Thursday, July 27, 2017

Since the declaration of a cease fire in 2012, the kingdom of Alcovia has remained in a tenuous state of peace which has been called an "Civil Cold War" by many analysts and politicians alike. There has been no official declaration of peace and the nation is still divided between west and east with a recognized demilitarized zone splitting the nation to 2/1, west to east, ratio.

Eastern Alcovia is strictly held by the rebel factions and the many militias that have risen up to support them and while the official government recognizes this border for the sake of peace during the cease fire, there have been no official talks of any sort of recognized official partitioning of the nation. More over, the rebels under General Kusatya have expressed absolute conviction for the overthrow of the Alcovian crown, its nobility and the standing government. King Ullo has stated that he will fight rebellion in all its forms should the rebels resume their open hostilities.

In the northeastern region of Slavikova, open fighting between militias is common and there are concerns that rebel militia factions in the region are being supported by outside factions, possibly Russian. Russia has denied these allegations, countering with supposed evidence that CIA and former KGB agents have been attempting to destabilize the region, though they declined to provide any rationale for such an endeavor. What is true is that the region is a hotbed of activity where very little can be done, by national or rebel military forces alike, to curtail the fighting.

During the cease fire, UN activity has increased with several refugee camps having been established on both sides of the Borka river where the majority of the refugees are ethnic Iqenis who are being forced out of eastern Alcovia not by the official rebel forces but by hostile militias who are using the region's instability to act on generations of ethnic prejudice and resentment toward those ethnic Iqeni who are native to the region and those who settled in later decades. Offcial Alcovian government response to this "cleansing" has been in opposition of the acts but lack of control over the region has made it impossible to act on these oppositions without threatening the cease fire.

Outrage in neighboring Iqenistan and local Iqeni populations was recently fueled when earlier UN findings that refuted claims of executions and death squads were themselves refuted by the discovery of several mass burials of mostly ethnic Iquenis. To date an estimated 250 bodies have been discovered in such mass graves throughout eastern Alcovia. When asked for a statement, a spokesperson for the Alcovian Ministry of the Interior had the following to say -

"The Alcovian Peoples' Army has resisted all requests by official government authorities to investigate these killings. These crimes are being perpetrated by Alcovian citizens against its own citizens and are the responsibility of the legitimate authorities, to be investigated by those authorities and to bring to justice the perpetrators of these crimes under Alcovian royal justice. It is our position that, until the APA allows official investigation of these crimes, they will be considered complicit in those crimes."

There are those among the international community that see the region as a smoldering fuse that could flare up at any moment and explode the country into open warfare. Royal forces retain their vigilant stance along the demilitarized border between east and west while rebel forces struggle to maintain their own front, despite shortages of fuel, ammunition and a crumbling infrastructure.

In the end, it may be time that decides this conflict, but at this time there is still very much a crisis in Alcovia.

Saturday, February 6, 2016

A New Idea From Armies Army

Armies Army has been a powerhouse of 15mm vehicle and figure design for some time now. Mostly a manufacturer of 15mm science fiction models, Keith has recently started working with Cold War era machines and troops and has now taken his first steps toward a very cool idea in helping out other up and coming designers. He starts this out with Ben Kerr Barnes' Gaz Tigr in 15mm

The Gaz Tigr is a high mobility 4x4 infantry vehicle with a role comparable to that of the US HMMWV. This vehicle entered service in 2006 with the Russian Army, Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Naval Infantry, and has been exported to a number of countries including China. It has been seen recently with Russian infantry in Syria and again in large numbers in Crimea. The standard vehicle can carry 9 passengers with the option of fighting from roof hatches and hinged ballistic windows.

According to Keith, he's waiting for the the master to get to him but says that it looks good for molding. Hopefully we will have this proper, modern Russian vehicle in our hands soon.

Check out the progress of the kit and all other Armies Army products at...

Monday, November 10, 2014

Over the last year or so, Crisis in Alcovia has taken a back burner to other projects. After abandoning the 20mm angle, I have been waiting for certain ranges of miniatures to start to mature, mainly Eureka's modern Russians.

Not only have I acquired some of these finally, I have also received a number of QRF Cold War era Russians that should make for a fine contract between acovian forces loyal to the crown and with newer equipment and rebel forces that are made up from units with older equipment (one of their main gripes).

I figures these, along with some converted Peter Pig militia types should make for the basics of infantry elements for the Alcovian Civil War. I have added some Khurasan Miniatures Somali militia types to these. They are a bit differently scaled but will work as militia elements on their own. They are really nice and will be painted as ethnic Iqenis.

Last, but definitely not the least, are some of Khurasan's new T-90 tanks. While a lot more recent than the hardware, I had planned to use in the Alcovian conflict, these will represent secret weapons of the crown, issued to elite bodyguard regiments.

I have also picked up some VBLs from IrishSerb. These are great little resin kits and while they are French, they do not look out of place next to Russian hardware. Alcovia purchased a bunch from France's export market. I picked these because nobody makes an Otokar Cobra or any of the other newer Eastern "jeeps".

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Karina Lotsacrop, representative of the University of Alcovia, Department of Human Studies speaks with the head of the Bongolesian security detail, JaJa Binku.

Today, at a discrete air field in western Alcovia, a military transport plane was received by a small group of civilian and government authorities. After a brief discussion between cultural attaches and the Bongolesian security detail, the diplomatic team was lead to a water motorcade where they were sped off to an undisclosed location, presumably to meet with King Ullo Chubakov, who had recently returned to seclusion after numerous threats were made on his person.

Early details indicate that Ambassador W'astsit T'uyoo an his staff are settling in nicely to their diplomatic quarters and are being treated to the highest level of Alcovian hospitality. This evening's welcome dinner is reported to include a meal of Alcovian wild boar and eels.

Sunday, April 6, 2014

After years of resistance to foreign intercession in the ongoing civil war, the Alcovian office of Internal Affairs has accepted an offer from the African nation of Bongolesia and will receive a diplomatic envoy with the intentions of allowing them to sit in on talks between National and rebel leaders.

Bongolesia, often criticized as the playground of a tyrant and a center for corruption and bush politics, seems an unlikely candidate for peace mediation. However, considering the Alcovian King's mistrust of European politics and desire to keep both Russia and the united States out of his country's affairs, a small, independent nation seated an ocean away may not be as odd a choice as it might seem.

The office of Internal Affairs released this quite from the initial communication sent by Bongolesia,

"Bongolesian Foreign Affairs Experat and Tip-Top
Diplomat, W'atsit T'uyoo and his staff are ready to make haste to Alcovia, to
show our friends that we can help and when we help, EVERYBODY can get some...We
come in peace and look forward to doing our bestest on the world stage of
international feel goods..."

Very positive and energetic words from the characteristically bombastic nation.

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

While scenes such as this have become more common since the cease fire was declared a little over two years ago, one must remind oneself that Alcovia is STILL a nation at war.

Peaceful as it may seem, the conflict that ravaged this once quiet Balkan nation still simmers under a last enmity that is maintained across no firmly entrenched lines of demarcation. Neither The Crown or the self-appointed Alcovian People's Army (APA) have made any declaration of a further peace and as time passes, each side of this conflict seems to get ever more committed to their respective mission.

While cleanup and reconstruction continue throughout the nation, pockets of armed forces both officially sanctioned and militia alike maintain positions, take possession of supplies and material. Shots still ring out in the night as armed gunmen patrol neighborhoods and patrols of soldiers weed out their rivals' insurgent forces. Add to this the continued and growing unrest among the ethnic Iqeni population in the East who are under ever increasing scrutiny coupled with bigotry and abuse by Alcovian nationals who, now unfettered from royal decree have little to keep them from acting on their agendas of sovereignty and racial purity.

This has signaled a call to arms for Iqenis who have no choice but to defend themselves. This in turn has drawn the attention of the government of Iqenistan, east across the Borka river and UN officials. Continued reports of crimes targeting ethnic Iqeni citizens in Alcovia continue to make their way across the Borka and into the hand of the UN who, to this date, have still been granted only the most basic access to Alcovian soil. One claim of mass graves found in the northeastern marshes was discounted as the bog mummified remains of earlier conflicts between Alcovia nd its Iqeni neighbors. While the report was accepted, based on photographic evidence, by UN inspectors, Iqenis still remain skeptical, fearing collusion or fraud.

A recent interview with Alcovia's Minsiter of Internal Affairs revealed that the king has grown concerned over recent events in the Ukraine. Russians interference in the sovereignty of that nation only serves to reinforce the king's fears that outside involvement in Alcovian affairs would be detrimental to the kingdom's continued independence. Russia had already voiced concerns over Alcovian instability in the first years of the civil war, even being complicit in backing an attempted breakaway by Alcovia's northern most region, Slavikova. While that break away was quelled and no direct Russian involvement was proven, Russian did maintain its position of maintaining stability in the region. Most recently, this concern for stability was expressed by an increase in credit for military exports to Alcovia from Russian arms industries.

For now, the world's eyes are off of Alcovia as the crisis in the Ukraine grows ever more intense. Hope holds that after two years of relative peace, the Wolf of the Balkans will, once more, slumber...﻿

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